Open Hearth’s Rental Assistance Program

Open Hearth’s Goal Achievement Program (GAP) is their homelessness prevention program that provides short-term, decreasing level rent payment assistance to those who are at risk of becoming homeless due to an unforeseen, short-term financial crisis. 

Thanks to the Phoenixville Community Health Foundation, they have an additional pool of funds to help those impacted by COVID-19 to keep them stably housed during this health and economic crisis.

Eligibility: 

  • Renter residing in Northern Chester County or Western Montgomery County
  • Must have an active lease agreement
  • Must have a source of income or guarantee of imminent income (this could be a layoff letter or an unemployment compensation letter) – proof of income for entire household from past 30 days required

Eligibility Screening

Contact Housing Programs Manager – Rebecca Rush – at (610) 792-9282 x. 207 or rrush@openhearthinc.org

Find a Good Book to Read (Part 2 of 3): Title Read-alikes

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Have a favorite book? Wishing you could find something like it to read next?

Here are a few ways to find find new books to try, based on a favorite book title:

NoveList Plus: You can start your search for title read-alikes here! Access NoveList Plus through the Library by visiting chescolibraries.org, selecting “Tools and Research” from the ribbon of choices at the top of the page, selecting “All CCLS Databases,” and then NoveList Plus. Enter your library card number when prompted.

Once you’re in NoveList Plus, use the search box at the top of the screen to search by title (hover over “Keyword” to select “Title”). Enter the name of a favorite title, select “Search,” and you’re on your way! From the main page for your book, you’ll find:

  • A list of “Read-Alikes” (other titles you might enjoy) on the right-hand side of the page. Select “View All” to see the complete list, along with reasons why NoveList Plus thinks you might like those titles.
  • “Lists and Articles” related to your book, to connect you with even more reading ideas.
  • A “Search For More” option (towards the bottom of the page) that lets you create a customized search for more title ideas, based on criteria you select.

Want to know more about a title that NoveList Plus suggests? Search for your new title idea in NoveList Plus, and then scroll down that title’s page to read professional reviews and more.

Here’s a brief video from NoveList for a helpful recap of how to find both Title and Author Read-alikes.

In addition to NoveList Plus, many libraries publish their own read-alikes on their websites, and no two lists are likely to be the same! Here are examples of the types of Google searches that can help you find more lists to peruse.

In these search examples, the titles are in quotes so that they’re searched as a complete phrase:

“Where the Crawdads Sing” library read-alikes

“A Gentleman in Moscow” library read-alikes

In this example, the author is included since the title is short, and may not be unique:

Outlander Gabaldon library read-alikes

Happy exploring! Earlier this week we discussed finding Author Read-alikes; stay tuned for more on finding reading ideas by book genre.

Kids’ Update: Celebrate Earth Day, 2020!

Every year, on April 22nd, people around the world celebrate Earth Day! Earth Day helps us all to remember what an amazing place our planet is and reminds up to protect it from things like pollution and deforestation. You can celebrate Earth Day in your neighborhood by picking up litter or planting trees to make our world a happier, healthier place to live.

You can read Build a Birdhouse, provided by The Child’s World, and then make a birdhouse with simple materials you have at home!

The Youth Services Staff at the Chester County Library and Hankin Branch are presenting Virtual Storytimes beginning April 27th. They will be for three different ages groups — 0 to 2 Year Olds, 3 & 4 Year Olds, and 5 & 6 Year Olds. Registration is required via the Events Calendar at https://chescolibraries.org/. Virtual Storytimes are not registered as multi-week sessions; you will need to register for each storytime individually.

No holds eAudiobooks – ready for download!

We have a collection of no holds audiobooks ready for easy download to your device. To help you choose, here are three you may like.

My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante – download here

Now an HBO series: the first volume in the New York Times bestselling “enduring masterpiece” (The Atlantic) about a lifelong friendship between two women from Naples.

Beginning in the 1950s in a poor but vibrant neighborhood on the outskirts of Naples, Elena Ferrante’s four-volume story spans almost sixty years, as its main characters, the fiery and unforgettable Lila and the bookish narrator, Elena, become women, wives, mothers, and leaders, all the while maintaining a complex and at times conflicted friendship.

This first novel in the series follows Lila and Elena from their fateful meeting as ten-year-olds through their school years and adolescence. Through the lives of these two women, Ferrante tells the story of a neighborhood, a city, and a country as it is transformed in ways that, in turn, also transform the relationship between two women.

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez – download here

One of the twentieth century’s enduring works, One Hundred Years of Solitude is a widely beloved and acclaimed novel known throughout the world and the ultimate achievement in a Nobel Prize–winning career.

The novel tells the story of the rise and fall of the mythical town of Macondo through the history of the Buendía family. Rich and brilliant, it is a chronicle of life, death, and the tragicomedy of humankind. In the beautiful, ridiculous, and tawdry story of the Buendía family, one sees all of humanity, just as in the history, myths, growth, and decay of Macondo, one sees all of Latin America.

Love and lust, war and revolution, riches and poverty, youth and senility, the variety of life, the endlessness of death, the search for peace and truth—these universal themes dominate the novel. Alternately reverential and comical, One Hundred Years of Solitude weaves the political, personal, and spiritual to bring a new consciousness to storytelling. Translated into dozens of languages, this stunning work is no less than an account of the history of the human race.

The Zookeeper’s Wife by Diane Ackerman – download here

Jan and Antonina Zabinski were Polish Christian zookeepers horrified by Nazi racism, who managed to save over three hundred people. Yet their story has fallen between the seams of history.

Drawing on Antonina’s diary and other historical sources, bestselling naturalist Diane Ackerman vividly re-creates Antonina’s life as “the zookeeper’s wife,” responsible for her own family, the zoo animals, and their “guests”: resistance activists and refugee Jews, many of whom Jan had smuggled from the Warsaw Ghetto.

Jan led a cell of saboteurs, and the Zabinski’s young son risked his life carrying food to the guests, while also tending to an eccentric array of creatures in the house (pigs, hare, muskrat, foxes, and more). With hidden people having animal names, and pet animals having human names, it’s a small wonder the zoo’s code name became “The House under a Crazy Star.” Yet there is more to this story than a colorful cast. With her exquisite sensitivity to the natural world, Ackerman explores the role of nature in both kindness and savagery, and she unravels the fascinating and disturbing obsession at the core of Nazism: both a worship of nature and its violation, as humans sought to control the genome of the entire planet.

Want something different? Visit our full collection of No Holds Audiobooks here. And for more information, see our post on Simultaneous Use eAudiobooks here.

When is your favorite time to listen to an audiobook?
Leave a comment – we’d love to hear from you!

Online Credit Repair Workshop

Open Hearth, Inc. is hosting its next financial workshop, Good Credit, How To Get It!, on Wednesday April 22nd at 6:00 PM. This workshop continues their Spring 2020 series of financial workshops that provide financial literacy to those who attend. Join their FREE , VIRTUAL workshop to learn how the credit system works; how to establish good credit quickly; and how to fix issues that went wrong.  

You will also learn how to design your personal repayment and repair schedule.

You won’t want to miss this!

Register TODAY @ www.tinyurl.com/nrec939

Questions? Email talexander@openhearthinc.org or call 610-280-1033.

Pennsylvania Launches COVID-19 Job Hiring Portal

Pennsylvanians looking for work can now find life-sustaining businesses that are hiring through a new online tool known as the COVID-19 Hiring Now Job Portal.

People seeking employment can visit PA CareerLink Website and select the green “PA COVID-19 Jobs – Hiring Immediately” job portal banner to see active job openings.

Selecting the “Apply Now” button for a listed position will redirect individuals to the employer’s website or email where they can apply directly with the employer and speed up the hiring process.

Life-sustaining businesses can feature their job openings on the portal through an easy to use online form. Businesses must meet the criteria of a life-sustaining business and must have more than 10 job openings .

The PA COVID-19 job portal is updated daily so businesses in need are spotlighted and people searching for employment have the latest job information.

Kids’ Update: Teach Yourself Origami

With lots of time on your hands, this is a great time to learn a new skill! Have you always wanted to learn origami? Here are some great sites to get you started! Red Ted Art: Origami for Kids, Origami for Kids, Top 10 Origami Projects for Beginners, and Joseph Wu Origami.

There’s a famous true story about origami, called Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes. If you’ve never read the book, here’s a short version of Sadako Sasaki’s story. It’s a sad story but also a story filled with hope. The Story of Sadako Sasaki.

The Youth Services Staff at the Chester County Library and Hankin Branch are presenting Virtual Storytimes beginning April 27th. They will be for three different ages groups — 0 to 2 Year Olds, 3 & 4 Year Olds, and 5 & 6 Year Olds. Registration is required via the Events Calendar at https://chescolibraries.org/. Virtual Storytimes are not registered as multi-week sessions; you will need to register for each storytime individually.

Virtual Programs: Online Book Discussion

Join us to discuss Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. This title is available as a No Holds eBook through our OverDrive collection. You can access the title using the OverDrive website (https://chester.overdrive.com) or through the Libby app. For help using OverDrive, please visit our OverDrive help page.

We will be offering two sessions for this discussion. Please register for one of the sessions using the links below:

Tuesday, April 28, 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Thursday, April 30, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.

A Zoom link will be emailed to registrants 2 hours before the program starts.  Make sure to check the email address you registered with to receive the link. You do not need a Zoom account to attend the virtual program.

CCLS/CCL Board Meeting

Due to the COVID-19 threat, the Board of Trustees of the Chester County Library System/Chester County Library will be holding their monthly board meeting virtually. If you have always wanted to attend a meeting but haven’t had the time, this is your opportunity. Please click this link at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, April 21 to join the Chester County Library System Board Meeting. The Chester County Library Board Meeting will immediately follow.